A Replica Vietnam Wall in Los Angeles was Defaced by Vandals

A replica Vietnam wall in Los Angeles was defaced with graffiti in late May 2016, not the The larger Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall in Washington DC.

Received a photo on Facebook that seems to show the Vietnam Wall in Washington DC vandalized with graffiti spray paint – tagged. It is photoshoped so everything is fine.

The image subsequently circulated across Facebook, and the descriptor „the Vietnam Wall“ led many to believe that the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C. had been vandalized. The Associated Press published a 30 May 2016 article about the damage, noting that the monument defaced was a smaller replica wall in Los Angeles and had been the target of previous vandalism:

The homespun memorial painted on a block-long wall on Pacific Avenue lists the names of American service members missing in action or unaccounted for in Southeast Asia. Painted by a Vietnam veteran and dedicated in 1992, it declares, „You are not forgotten.“

The wall has been tagged previously but the latest vandalism covers the bottom half of the memorial for much of its length.

An article published by the Los Angeles Times on the same date described the memorial wall as a „mural,“ reporting:

Officials said that the damage from a graffiti attack on a veterans memorial in Venice was so extensive that it will take some time to restore the monument.

Volunteers removed much of the graffiti over the Memorial Day weekend but it appears more work will be necessary to fully restore the memorial.

The memorial is painted on the side of a Metro building.

“We were initially hopeful that the graffiti could be removed without damaging the memorial, but Metro’s contractor says the damage is too extensive,” Metro CEO Phil Washington said in a statement. “Metro will work with the community to gather historical photos so the wall can be restored. In the meantime, Metro will cover the wall as a gesture of respect to the fallen whose names were covered by the graffiti.“

Residents expressed outrage over the vandalism.

The replica Vietnam Wall was painted by a veteran and dedicated in 1992. Restoration efforts began immediately (much of it by volunteer veterans), but local officials said the damage was extensive. In the interim, the wall was covered as a gesture of respect to the fallen.